Turning roll assembly



y 1962 c. N. COOPER 3,042,239

TURNING ROLL ASSEMBLY Filed March 24, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

2 CLEVELAND N. COOPER WM'PM ATTORNEYS July 3, 1962 c. N. COOPER 3,042,239

TURNING'ROLL ASSEMBLY Filed March 24, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. 5 CLEVELAND N. COOPER BY MW ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,042,239 TURNING ROLL ASSEMBLY Cleveland N. Cooper, Webster Groves, Mo., assignor to Pandjiris Weidment Co., St. Louis, Mo., a corporation of Missouri Filed Mar. 24, 1958, Ser. No. 723,442 6 Claims. (Cl. 214-340) This invention relates generally to improvements in a turning roll assembly, and more particularly to an improved roll assembly adapted to support and rotate a work piece.

It is an important objective of the present invention to provide an improved roll assembly adapted to turn a horizontally disposed cylindrical tank at a predetermined rate incident to welding of annular seams.

An important object is achieved by the provision of a drive roll structurally disposed relative to a pair of tanksupporting wheels to realize an effective and efiicient driving connection.

Other important advantages are afforded by the provision of an adjustable connection between the paired turning wheels for selectively adjusting the pressure with the drive roll, the structural arrangement of the drive roll relative to the wheels and the position of the adjustable connection assuring that both wheel carriers are subjected to the same inward force for equal load carrying capabilities, and for preventing unbalanced horizontal forces on the driving roll shaft.

Another important object is provided by an assembly in which a pair of wheels adapted to support a work piece is located on opposite sides of a drive roll and is arranged to engage frictionally the drive roll for rotation in the same direction whereby to rotate the supported Work piece.

Still another important object is to realize a turning roll assembly that is simple and durable in construction, economical to manufacture, eflicient in operation, and which is adapted to be quickly and easily adjusted for optimum performance.

The foregoing and numerous other objects of the invention will more clearly appear from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment, particularly when considered in connection with the accompanying drawing, in which:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the turning roll assembly showing the drive roll assembly and idler roll assembly;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the drive roll assembly shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an end elevational view of the turning roll assembly shown in FIG. 1, the drive roll assembly being partially cut away to disclose more clearly the structure and relationship of the drive roll;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged top plan view of the wheel-supporting brackets and the interconnecting adjustment mechanism shown in FIG. 1, and

FIG. 5 is a fragmentary enlarged portion of the base on which the bracket structure of FIG. 4 is mounted, and showing in dashed lines the position of such bracket structure.

Referring now by characters of reference to the drawings, it is seen that the turning roll assembly consists of a powered drive roll assembly generally indicated at and a cooperating idler roll assembly referred to at 11.

The drive roll assembly 10 includes a base 12 of inverted U-shaped configuration having a flat upper wall 13, depending opposed side walls 14 with horizontally extending foot flanges 15, and end plates 16 enclosing each base end.

The power unit is mounted on base 12, the power unit including an electric motor .17, the drive shaft of which "ice is connected to a speed-reducing mechanism 20 through a drive connection enclosed by housing '21. Wheel 22 is operatively connected to the drive connection between the motor 17 and speed-reducing mechanism 20 so as to obtain an adjustment of the degree of speed step-down from motor 17 to the speed-reducing unit 20. As is best seen in FIGS. 1 and 2, the speed-reducing mechanism 20 is mounted to the upper base wall 13 by a plurality of bolts 23 with spacers 24 therebetween.

A drive roll 25 is keyed to a drive shaft 26 journalled in standard 277. The standard 27 is fixed by bolts 30 to the upper wall 13 of base 12. As is best seen in FIG. 3, the drive roll 25 is provided with a straight knurl or grooves to provide a friction drive surface.

A gear box 31 is attached to standard 27, the gearing (not shown) therein operatively interconnects drive shaft 26 to input shaft 32. The output shaft 33 of speed-reducing unit 20 is operatively connected to input shaft 32 by an intermediate shaft 34 attached by couplings 35.

The turning roll assembly includes a pair of brackets constituting wheel-supporting means located on opposite sides of the drive roll 25. Each bracket includes a base portion 36 and a pair of spaced upstanding bracket sections 37 between which a turning wheel 40 is rotatively mounted by an axle 41. The rotative axes of axles 41 are located in parallel relation with the axis of drive roll 25. The turning wheels 40 are of the same size, and are provided with rubber tires 39 about their peripheries adapted to engage frictionally the knurled surface of drive roll 25. In the preferred construction, the rotative axes of Wheels 40 are located in the same horizontal plane above the rotative axis of drive roll 25.

The base portion 36 of each bracket is secured to upper base wall 13 by a plurality of bolts 42. The mounting of the brackets to the base 12 is perhaps best shown in FIGS. 4 and 5. The base portion 36 is provided with a plurality of circular apertures 43 adapted to receive the shanks of bolts 42. Aligned with apertures 43 in the upper base wall 13 are a plurality of elongate slots 44 through which the bolts 42 extend. The broken lines in FIG. 5 indicate the position of the bracket base portions 36 when located on the upper base wall 13. For reasons which will appear later, the longitudinal axes of slots 44 are arranged in parallel relation.

The wheel-supporting means are operatively interconnected by adjustment means adapted to vary the spacing between the brackets. The base portion 36 of each bracket is provided with an upstanding bar 45 (FIG. 4) fixed thereto. The bars 45 are connected by a pair of tie rods 46. Nuts 47 threadedly attached to tie rods 46 engage bars 45, and determine the spacing of the brackets.

Before completely tightening bolts 42 in attaching the brackets to the base wall 13, the nuts 47 are threadedly adjusted on tie rods 46 to move the brackets simultaneously toward or away from each other, incident to urging the turning wheels 40 against the drive roll 25. After adjustment of tie rods 46, the bolts 42 are completely tightened to maintain the brackets in the adjusted position on the base wall 13.

The idler roll assembly 11 is best shown in FIGS. 1 and 3. The assembly 11 includes a stand 50 having a base 51 and an upstanding receiver formed by side walls 52 and end walls 53. Rotatively mounted between stand walls 52 on axles 54 is a pair of idler wheels 55. The idler wheels 55 are provided with rubber tires to provide an efficient friction contact with the work piece supported thereon.

The idler wheels 55 are of the same diameter as the turning wheels 40, and are mounted on rotative axes disposed in the same horizontal plane as turning wheels 40. In addition, the idler wheels 55 have approximately the same spacing as turning wheels 40.

The wheels 40 and 55 are utilized to support a cylindrical work piece in a horizontal position. Particularly the assembly is utilized to support and rotate cylindrical tanks during welding of annular seams. A cylindrical tank is illustrated by reference numeral 56 in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3.

In utilizing the drive roll assembly, the pressure between turning wheels 40 and drive roll 25 is adjusted. First, the bolts 42 are loosened so that the base portions 36 of the brackets are free to move selectively toward and away from each other upon guiding action of bolts 42 in slots 44. The nuts 47 on tie rods 46 are threadedly adjusted so that the brackets are moved simultaneously in selectively adjusting the pressure of turning wheels 40 with drive roll 25. This structural arrangement of the drive roll 25 relative to turning wheels 40, and the position and operation of the adjustable tie rods assure that both turning wheels 40 are subjected to the same inward force for equal load-carrying capabilities and for preventing unbalanced horizontal forces on the drive roll shaft 26.

After the brackets and the turning wheels 4% are adjusted, the bolts 42 are tightened to clamp the base portions 36 to the upper base wall 13, thus maintaining the assembly in the selectively adjusted position.

Although the invention has been described by making detailed reference to a single preferred embodiment, such detail is to be understood in an instructive, rather than in any resuictive sense, many variants being possible within the scope of the claims hereunto appended.

I claim as my invention:

1. In a turning roll assembly for supporting and rotating a Work piece, a base, a pair of wheels disposed in side by side relation, support means movably mounted on said base for carrw'ng each said wheel, a drive roll disposed between said wheels and drivingly engaging said wheels to rotate said Wheels in the same direction, means for rotating said drive roll whereby to turn said wheels and said work piece, a tie rod interconnecting said support means including means for adjusting the length of the rod to vary the distance between said support means simultaneously, whereby to urge the wheels against the drive roll with "a balanced predetermined pressure, and means fastening the support means to said base in the adjusted position.

2. The combination and arrangement of elements as recited above in claim 1, but further characterized by the provision of -a guide means interconnecting the support means with said base for directing the support means selectively toward or away from said drive roll upon adjustment of said tie rod.

3. In a turning roll assembly for supporting and rotating a work piece, a base, a pair of Wheels disposed in spaced side by side relation in the same vertical plane with their rotative axes arranged in substantially horizontal parallel relation, support means movably mounted on said base for carrying said wheels, a drive roll disposed between said wheels and drivingly engaging said wheels so as to rotate said wheels in the same direction, the drive roll having its rotative axis arranged in substantially horizontal parallel relation to the said wheel axes, said wheels being of substantially the same diameter, means for rotating said drive roll, whereby to turn said wheels and said work piece, means interconnecting said support means including an adjustable connection for simultaneously adjusting the distance between said support means on said base incident to urging the wheels against the drive roll with a predetermined force, and means fastening the support means to said base in the adjusted position.

4. In a turning roll assembly for supporting and ro tating a work piece, a base, a pair of wheels disposed in spaced side by side relation with their rotative axes arranged in substantially parallel relation, support means carrying each said Wheel, a drive roll disposed between said wheels and drivingly engaging the periphery of said wheels, guide means interconnecting the support means and said base for directing the support means and the wheels carried thereby toward and away from said drive roll, means interconnecting said support means including an adjustable connection for moving said support means simultaneously along the guide means incident to urging the wheels against the drive roll with a predetermined force, and means fastening the support means to said base in the adjusted position.

5. The combination and arrangement of elements as recited above in claim 4, but further characterized in that the said guide means consist of a plurality of slots provided in the base extending lengthwise at right angles to the rotative axes of said Wheels and said drive roll, boits located in said slots connecting the support means to said base, and threaded members attached to said bolts for selectively attaching the support means to the base in an adjusted position of the bolts in said slots.

6. In a powered turning roll assembly for supporting and rotating a work piece such as a cylindrical tank incident to automatic welding of horizontal seams, a

" base, a drive roll supported on said base and arranged with its rotative axis in a substantially horizontal position, power means connected to said drive roll, a pair of wheels of substantially the same diameter disposed on opposite sides of the drive roll in the same vertical plane with their rotative axes disposed in substantially horizontal parallel relation with the drive roll axis, said wheels and drive roll being provided with engaging friction surfaces about their peripheries, support means carrying each said wheel, guide means interconnecting the support means and said base for directing the support means toward or away from said drive roll, a tie rod interconnecting said support means including an adjustable connection for adjusting the length of the rod to adjust the distance between said support means so as to urge the friction surfaces of said wheels against the friction surfaces of said drive roll with a predetermined pressure, and means fastening the support means to said base in the adjusted position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 412,386 Henderson Oct. 8, 1889 2,042,794 Meyer June 2, 1936 2,354,628 Whitesell July 25, 1944 2,669,364 Aronson Feb. 16, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 501,995 Belgium Apr. 14, 1951 

